Questions remain unanswered after the burial of Saif al-Islam Gadhafi, who was killed
Amnesty International said his death highlights ‘the widespread climate of impunity in Libya’
- Burial in Bani Walid after the killing
- Official investigation and accounts of the attack
- Amnesty International's reaction and context of impunity
- Political profile and career of Saif al-Islam Gadhafi
- Call for restraint and risks to reconciliation
- Speculation about perpetrators and motives
Burial in Bani Walid after the killing
The son of former Libyan leader Muammar Gadhafi, who was recently killed, will be buried in a town south of the capital that remains loyal to the family, his relatives said on Thursday.
Saif al-Islam Gaddafi, once considered by some to be Libya's natural successor, was shot dead on Tuesday in the northwestern town of Zintan. The funeral will take place on Friday in the town of Bani Walid, located about 175 kilometres south of Tripoli, according to two of his brothers.
‘The date and place of the burial have been decided by mutual agreement among the family,’ his half-brother Mohamed Gaddafi said in a Facebook post. Mohamed said the plan reflected ‘our respect’ for the town, which has remained loyal to former leader Gaddafi years after he was overthrown and killed in 2011.
Official investigation and accounts of the attack
Meanwhile, Libyan prosecutors said they had begun investigating the killing of the son of ousted ruler Muammar Gaddafi, Saif al-Islam, amid many unanswered questions about the motives for the killing and who was behind it.
The prosecutor's office said forensic experts had been sent to Zintan, in north-western Libya, where he was shot dead, adding that work was underway to identify the suspects. ‘The victim died from gunshot wounds,’ the prosecutor's office said in a statement, adding that investigators were trying to ‘talk to witnesses and anyone who could shed light on the incident’.
Marcel Ceccaldi, a French lawyer representing Saif al-Islam, said he was killed by an unidentified ‘four-man commando’ that stormed his home on Tuesday. Following an arrest warrant issued by the International Criminal Court for alleged crimes against humanity, Saif al-Islam was detained by Libyan authorities in 2011. He was subsequently sentenced to death by a court in Tripoli, but was granted amnesty.
Amnesty International's reaction and context of impunity
The international human rights organisation Amnesty International said in a statement that the death of the alleged perpetrator of crimes against humanity ‘deprives survivors and relatives of victims of their right to truth, justice and reparation’.
The organisation noted that this also highlighted ‘the widespread climate of impunity in Libya, which fuels crimes against international law and other violations committed by abusive and unaccountable militias and armed groups’.
Political profile and career of Saif al-Islam Gadhafi
The 53-year-old Gadhafi was considered by some to be his father's successor. He had a doctorate from the London School of Economics and was associated with some members of the London elite.
Although he held no official position under his father's 40-year iron-fisted rule, he was described as Libya's de facto prime minister, cultivating an image of moderation and reform. But that reputation quickly collapsed when he promised ‘rivers of blood’ in response to the 2011 popular uprisings that toppled his father. In 2021, he announced that he would run for president, but the elections were postponed indefinitely.
The head of the Presidential Council, a transitional body that is supposed to represent all of divided Libya under a UN agreement, urged ‘political forces, the media and social actors to show restraint in their public statements and to avoid incitement to hatred.’
Call for restraint and risks to reconciliation
‘We call on all political forces to await the results of the official investigation,’ Mohamed al-Menfi said in a statement, referring to Saif al-Islam as a ‘presidential candidate.’
Menfi added that the escalation could ‘undermine national reconciliation efforts and the holding of free and fair elections.’ Libya has struggled to recover from the chaos that erupted after the 2011 uprising, later backed by NATO, that toppled Muammar Gaddafi.
No information has been released about his burial, but his adviser, Abdullah Othman Abdurrahim, told Libyan media that the autopsy had been completed and that he could be buried in Bani Walid, south of the capital, Tripoli. Very little is known about the identity or motives of the attackers, leading to divergent speculation among the population.
Speculation about perpetrators and motives
Speculation, but no facts
Saif's adviser, Abdullah Othman Abdurrahim, told the Libyan media that four unidentified men broke into the house, ‘deactivated the surveillance cameras and then executed him’.
Account of the assault in Zintan
Claudia Gazzini, senior Libya analyst at the International Crisis Group, described the timing of Saif's death as ‘strange’. ‘He had been living a relatively quiet life for many years, away from the public eye,’ she said. Saif had announced his candidacy for the presidency in 2021.
Those elections were postponed indefinitely, and since then he had made few significant public appearances.
Recent political activity and whereabouts
His whereabouts were largely unknown. Apart from a small inner circle, and probably the Libyan authorities, few people knew that he was living in Zintan. Ceccaldi said that he ‘moved around a lot’ but had ‘been in Zintan for quite some time.’ Anas El Gomati, director of the Tripoli-based Sadeq Institute think tank, said the timing was ‘raw.’
Interpretations of the political impact
His death came just ‘48 hours after a US-brokered meeting in Paris between Saddam Haftar and Ibrahim Dbeibah,’ respectively the son of eastern Libya strongman Khalifa Hafter and the nephew of Tripoli-based Prime Minister Abdulhamid Dbeibah.
Experts disagree on the extent of Saif's political influence.
However, there is broad consensus on his symbolic weight as the most prominent figure associated with pre-2011 Libya. ‘Saif had become an uncomfortable actor’ in Libyan politics after announcing his candidacy for the 2021 elections, said Hasni Abidi, director of the Geneva-based Centre for Studies and Research on the Arab and Mediterranean World.
His assassination ‘benefits all political actors’ currently vying for power in the North African country, Abidi said. For Gomati, his death ‘eliminates Libya's last viable rival to the current power structure.’ ‘He was neither a democrat nor a reformist, but he represented an alternative that threatened both Haftar and Dbeibah,’ Gomati added. ‘His elimination consolidates their duopoly... The nostalgic pro-Gaddafi bloc no longer has a credible leader.’
Libya expert Jalel Harchaoui offered a more cautious assessment, saying that Saif's death ‘is not a major disruption.’
‘He was not at the head of a unified and cohesive bloc that wielded real weight in the competition for power, rivalries or the distribution of territory or wealth,’ Harchaoui explained. Even so, ‘he could have played a decisive role in specific circumstances,’ Harchaoui said, arguing that his mere presence on the presidential ballot would have had a substantial impact.
Speculation among the population and suspicions of foreign intervention
Speculation is rife among the population. Some have suggested the involvement of a local armed group based in Zintan that perhaps no longer wanted Saif on its territory. Others suspect that foreign forces may have been involved.
‘The sophistication of the operation, with four agents, internal access and deactivated cameras, suggests the involvement of foreign intelligence services, not militia action,’ Gomati said.